Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-02-09
AFTER THE ACCIDENT,
All But Two Beetles Found at White
RIver-Thirtv-FOur Passengers Known
TO Have Perished.
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION. VT, Feb. 5.

WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, Vt, Feb. 5.
Three more identifcations were made up
10 noon today-George j. Bell of Bellows
Falls, Francis Flynn OF Worcester, Mass,
and Louis B. James of New Haven, Conn.
( The total number on the train shown bv eyi.
dence so far is S4, including employees. and
81 are known 10 be dead and y are known to
have gone home, which. with Sc wounded,
leaves today only two missing.
Up to noon there had been Is dead denti.
ned. People VINO have come to Hartford in
search of lost friends and relatives complain
that they are treated with marked neglect and
indifference by those who have charge of the
morgue in that place, and that they are put
/ OH with various excuses, and overtures tor
settlement for damages are urged upon them
| prior 10 their being abe TO accomplish their
mission, and the injured survivors are being
persistentiy annoyed with opportunities tor q
settlement of their claims. Some of the
survivors say lawyer in the interests of tile
Central Railroad Co., who is in charge of the
injured az Pease Hotel, Hartford, has urged
upon those in his charge the proprietv of at
once adjusting their legal claims
The investigation into the causes OF the
accident was continued today. \ track
walker who had examined the track at IL 80
7. Nj. on the day before the accident testi.
lied that there was no visible defect in the
rails anywhere IN the vicinity OF the scene of
the accident.
A. c. Bean, road master of the Vermont
| Central Railroad testified: When | first
learned of the acci1ent got axes, pals, etc.,
and went TO the wreck as soon as possible
with train Found one woman lying on
the ice with no one near her, and sent her to
house near by, and then sent for a doctor
to attend her. The flames would not allow
any one to approach the cars. Found some
wounded men IN the baggage car, one being
Brakeman Bangs, who soon died. Took sew
eral of the wounded to West Hartford in the
baggage car and found rooms tor them.
spent my time in caring for the wounded at
the wreck and directing operations. When
coming to the bridge | saw three rails torn
out of position, bent, and one was broken off.
The rails were made at ST. Aibans from ore
brought from Germany Were OF Bessemer
steel and laid five years ago Steel rails are
| in use here now that have been rolled 20
years. Found two or three breaks, and can
not tell which broke first or whether one
caused the others. Think but two places
show marks OF wheels before reaching bridge
Should say these were made bv forward
trucks of car, because of peculiaritles of
marks. Consider all marks made by one
| pair of trucks. The reason is, because if two
sets of trucks went off they would not track I"
| Anv one can see the rear end of a train sways
around more than any other. | think both
| pairs of trucks got off before reaching the
abutment. The two cracks shown by the
marks are only six or seven inches from each
other The cars unshackeled after they
struck the ice, which explains fully the rea-
sons fer such theory, because of their pres
ent position. | think the second car was on
the track until the last one dropptd from the
bridge; the rear car turned over as soon as
it left the abutment. | think that the Jour
nal is what threw the rear car from the track
and that from the place of the broken
rail to the bridge it was held in
place by the "hawsing" The west rail
shows marks of hard scratching on the ball
of the rail which could not be done by the
engine slipping as no engine has passed over
since the accident. | cannot say why the
axle broke, the weight Of the rails is 60
pounds to the yard and but few roads use
| heavier rails.